SPECKLED MOUSEBIRD

[Jeni Williams]

Sorry - the Hap's will have to come out in force!! Not often these birds come out into the open.:o
Canon EOS40D
Focal length: 280mm
f/5.6
exp. time: 1/1000sec

[Andre Valadao]

Very nice to see this little guy out in the open, all my shots of them are in the bushes.

Very nice BG and i like the comp. Head a little bit soft, perhaps you where focused on his back. (maybe try a slightly higher f-stop
Not sure if its my monitor but there are a few spots where it looks like you missed a bit of NR.

Well done

[Ákos Lumnitzer]

HAP or no HAP it is a cool looking bird. I like it. Out of curiousity, what did you do to the image? The background looks very clinical and "perfect". Thanks for sharing. :)

[Lance Peters]

Hi Jeni - cool bird and composition has to be difficult with that long tail, exposure looks good and the BG is great (all natural?) Head area is a bit soft - more than likely our point of focus was not on the head and/or the F5.6 did not provide enough DOF.
Yes the HAP will probably issue a small fine - you might escape a jail term. :)

[Nonda Surratt]

I like it Jeni! What a very cool bird! HA doesn't bother me much would maybe try and sharpen (head) just a bit?

[Gus Cobos]

Hi Jeni,
A beautiful bird and matching perch, I like the color rendition and pose...your head angle is off, and yes...a tad on the soft side...aside from this, it looks good...:cool:

[Jeni Williams]

Thanks guys, I focused on the eye, 1/2 depressed shutter and recomposed to get the tail in. Not sure where I lost the sharpness on the head.
I have attached the original image just converted to jpeg and resized. As you can see there is a tree in the bg resulting in quite a bit of noise; this I smoothed out by using Oom Gus' painting method.....soft brush. Also cloned out the white "splats" on the branch.
Any other ideas please have a go!!:D:D (but let me know how and what!!!!);)

Have also run a smart sharpen at 50 over the bird on posted image - better?

[Alfred Forns]

Nice seen the little guy again Jeni ... and seeing you posting sensory overload !!! :)

Great suggestions and fully agree !! bg wise do like the original better, Akos has a good point regarding feel !!

[denise ippolito]

Jeni, Great capture and would just selectively sharpen head- PS- Nice to see you posting again!!!

[Jeni Williams]

Thanks Al and Denise, Sometimes get very frustrated at only getting "garden birds" as cute as they are - just needed a break to appreciate them again.;)

[Katie Rupp]

Hi Jeni, another vote for the original background and good to see your images again.

[Jackie Schuknecht]

Great framing and showcasing of the tail Jeni. Love where you have placed the bird in the frame. Like the sat. and contrast of the original post:) Where have you been?